No More Bets
by chizry
Summary: In response to a birthday challenge. Sometimes what seems wrong is done with the best of intentions.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **No More Bets  
**Rating: **R (only for some language)  
**Disclaimer: **Anything recognizable belongs to CBS.  
**A/N:** A happy birthday challenge fic for my Sandle friend applelori (a.k.a remoob1513). In response to her proposed challenge:  
1. Greg and Sara have become friends (before Who Shot Sherlock).  
2. Working more with Sara, Greg starts to fall for her even more than he already has. Nick, seeing his attraction to the brunette comes up with a plan, trying to make the ex-lab tech happy along with his favorite brunette, hoping that she would change their friendship to a relationship.  
3. In a betting mood Nick decides to put his plan into action. His bet is that she can't handle going on a few dates with Greg, hoping that sparks would fly. After a bit of reluctance she agrees.  
4. After making the bet with Nick, Sara goes and asks Greg out. Greg is extremely excited, while Sara is happy that she isn't going out with a prick.  
5. Going on the dates, Greg treats here as we all know he would and Sara starts to feel her becoming attracted to him, that she's going to admit to Nick.  
6. After the 3 or 4 dates Sara goes to Nick to get her winnings. Walking through the lab Greg hears Sara and Nick going over the bet and what she gets. Hearing all of it Greg flips out, finding that he's basically a toy.  
7. Trying to calm down, Greg gets angrier and decides to confront them. Getting little out of them, he decides he can't deal with either of them, and ends both friendships (Greg's friendship to Nick and Greg's friendship with Sara).  
8. Both Nick and Sara try to talk to Greg at work or at home. Feeling overwhelmed Greg goes to Grissom and asks him to change his mentor from Sara to Warrick, to which Grissom questioningly agrees. But after their still constant apologizing and trying to get their friendships back, Greg goes to Grissom with an ultimatum; that either he gets switched to a different shift or he is going to leave.  
9. Does he get switched? How will the team take it? Can Nick and Sara get their friendships back? How will the story end?  
10. Greg/Sara friendship, Nick/Greg friendship ends Greg/Sara/Nick friendship and Greg/Sara  
11. MUST USE characters; Greg, Sara, Grissom, Catherine, Warrick, Nick, and Hodges  
12. any rating

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Nick Stokes grinned knowingly as he saw a familiar head of spiky hair inch closer to one with slightly curly brunette locks. Being the youngest out of his siblings, he had put up with all the countless boyfriends and crushed boys who at one time or another liked one (or more) of his sisters.

And that experience really came in handy.

If he didn't know better-which he did-he'd say that Sanders was falling even harder for his best friend. And there was indisputable evidence to this theory.

First sign-the wedding chapel story. Whenever their supervisor had paired him up with Sara, the Texan noticed that Greg always got a little envious. But when the former lab rat heard the count of how many chapels wanted to get Sara and Nick hitched, he had refused to talk to them for days.

Second sign-all the symptoms. Greg's eyes were sparkling even more, his 'accidental' touches more frequent and more lingering. And God forbid, Nick thought, that his youngest colleague absolutely adored the brunette. Warrick had even gone as far as to tape the poor guy's mouth shut one night, for Sanders was going non-stop about her.

Third sign-pure instinct. Nick wasn't second-in-seniority in graveyard shift for nothing.

Right now, it was just pitiful in a cute-puppy-dog kind of way to see Greg pining away, even though he was sitting right next to her in the layout room.

If his matchmaking skills had anything to say, Nick thought, it was time for some well-planned action.

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"C'mon, Sar, give this guy a chan-"

She glared at him, shaking her head. "I said no, Nicky. You've done this before." Sara picked up the reports she had set down on the table and got ready to leave the trace lab.

Nick blocked her way out, and gave her his most charming smile. "I bet you that you couldn't ask this guy out and get him to accept." He cajoled, watching as she unsuccessfully tried to brush past him.

A smirk crossed her face. "Is that a dare, Stokes?"

He just nodded at her in reply, giving himself a mental high five as she took the proverbial bait. "You bet, Sidle."

Sara narrowed her eyes at him. "What do I get if I win?"

Pondering a bit, Nick wondered. What would appeal to her the most? "A free dinner on me? At that new veggie place on the Strip."

The brunette frowned. "Sorry, but no thanks." She moved forward to leave, but his arm was still blocking the doorway.

"How 'bout free dinner...and doing all your paperwork for a week?" He tilted his head to the side, giving her a "why-not?" look. "And vice versa."

Throwing him a skeptical glance, Sara quirked an eyebrow. "You hate paperwork."

"Exactly." He threw her a convincing grin. "So, deal?"

Shaking hands, the corner over her mouth twitched upwards. "Deal." Escaping the room, she paused in her steps. "Wait. So who am I supposed to ask for a date?"

"Good ol' Greggo, of course."

He removed his arm from the metal doorframe and left her gaping in the middle of the hallway.

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Several hours later, Sara found the spiky-haired lab rat in his home away home. Greg was so absorbed in some epidermis samples from Catherine's case that he didn't even notice her come in. A sharp rap on the glass window jolted him from his thoughts.

He glanced up from his work to see his love-no, closest friend, he must keep that in mind-leaning against the doorframe smiling at him. "Oh, hey, Sara. Your results just came in." Blindly reaching for the paper in the printer, he handed it to her without a second glimpse, afraid that she'd see the infatuation in her eyes.

"Thanks." She read the report, but quickly let her hand hang down at her side. "But that's not why I'm here."

Greg's eyes flicked up to her face. "Huh?"

"How about a drink after shift? Only you and me."

His mouth dropped open in blissful shock. "Uh….sure."

"Good. After shift then."

Nick heard the loud whoop of his younger friend's joy ring through the hallways of the lab. He sighed heavily and

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Dinner for two at the Bellagio-somehow, the drinks had escalated from the movies to one of the most expensive places in Vegas.

Greg was counting every last second of it-it was their third date, and he was actually quite surprised how it grew into something more formal than just a casual outing. It was the epitome of heaven in his book.

For Sara, it was beyond confusing. Not that she had had many dates before, but this one seemed utterly different compared to those in the past. With Hank, there were always awkward silences every other moment, times where she felt that the quiet was suffocating. Drowning her. And here she and Greg were, as comfortable with each other as cool cotton bed sheets.

"Red is definitely your color," he was complimenting, referring to the flowing silk dress she was wearing.

She had blushed, then tried to cover it up by ducking her head. It was one of those things that Greg said to her every day. Why was now any different?

"Shall we dance?" He had graciously offered his hand to her after they finished their dessert of Boston crème pie.

They had shuffled slowly on the wooden floor, synchronizing with each other and the soft jazz.

"It's nice to know you don't have two left feet," Greg had teased, letting her lead them gracefully through the crowds. That had prompted a tale of how one of her foster mothers forced her to take ballet while she was living there. Laughing, he had told her that he would've paid good money to see her in some pink frilly tutu and tights.

Somehow, it felt nice sharing her life with him, even if it wasn't something she herself considered worth sharing.

And then, the unexpected had happened. She had offered him a gentle kiss, not on the lips, but a loving one on the side of his mouth.

It wasn't the safest move, she knew, knowing full well that Greg had had a crush on her since Grissom had offered her a position on the Las Vegas team. Nick wasn't all too subtle either, getting her to accept the wage to hook them up.

But maybe her best friend had a point.

Paying for each and every date, Greg was the perfect gentleman. Sure, there were still the corny pick-up lines and weird quirks, but…it seemed more special than before. There was also the fact that he was also wearing a nicely pressed suit, but that was only part of the equation.

They were falling. Hard. Yet it was a nice feeling, knowing that there would be somebody to catch you.

"See you tomorrow during shift, alright?"

She couldn't wait.

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Walking past the locker room, Greg saw Nick and Sara. He grinned, seeing Sara grill the tall cowboy for something.

Almost out of earshot, he heard them arguing playfully, but it wasn't what stopped him in his tracks.

"I won the bet, now pay up, Nicky."

Turning around, he tipped his head toward the two, making sure to keep out of sight.

"You win, Sar. But can't I just do it for a day instead?" Greg heard Nick whine a little.

A laugh escaped Sara, and he heard the sound of her elbow edging their colleague in the ribs. "Nu-uh. A week, we made a deal. All my paperwork" One of the lockers slammed shut, and Greg jumped.

"Okay," Nick relented. "Only because you went above and beyond the call of duty. But I still can't believe you really-"

A large slap rang through the locker room, and Nick chuckled. "Dinner tomorrow after shift sound good to you?"

"Better be as good as the one I had last night."

Before the Texan could reply, the lab rat stomped in, nearly colliding with a confused Warrick.

Her back was facing the doorway, but as soon as she heard Greg growl uncharacteristically at Nick, Sara whirled around to confront him. "G-Greg?"

The expression on the younger man's face was entirely too calm, almost stony. However, the undeniable rage in his usually-teasing eyes gave away his true mood.

"I'm a bet?" Both of his friends cringed at how composed his voice was. "A toy? A pet, perhaps? The lab rat would make a good pet, is that what you all think?"

"Uh..." Sara looked to Nick for support, who gave an imperceptible shrug.

"It's not what you think, Greggo." He tried, knowing it would have little success. His plan was sinking faster than the Titanic, and taking Sara down with it.

"How do you know what I think?" Each word grew louder by the second.

Sara was becoming uneasy. It was hoped that he wouldn't find out, but…"Calm down," she begged, figuring out that he thought she had used him.

"Like hell I'm going to calm down!"

Curious faces began to peer in the doorway, Catherine Willows one of them. From a quiet accusation to a full-on shouting match, the argument was attracting too much attention. The strawberry-blonde frowned, looking between a nervous Sara, an apologetic Nick, and an apoplectic Greg.

"Uh…what's going on here, you guys? You're attracting quite the crowd." With a wave of her hand, she gestured fro the crowd to leave.

Without saying a word, Greg brushed past Catherine and stalked down the hallway, his lab coat flapping.

"What'd you guys do?" The motherly CSI's voice was laced in concern. Usually, Greg wasn't so hostile, and it took a lot to get him that way.

Sara sighed. A heavy feeling settled in her heart. "Wish we didn't know." She muttered sadly.


	2. Chapter 2

Shift was nearing its end, and thankfully all the cases that Grissom had handed out were trivial. Sara and Nick were grateful that their ever-so-oblivious supervisor had given them an open-and-shut case.

If they had to walk into the DNA lab, they were guaranteed to spend all night waiting for their results. Greg was awfully pissed (or so Judy, the blonde receptionist, had said), and neither of them wanted to add more fuel to the fire.

"Seen Greggo anywhere?" the Texan whispered. The news of the bet had spread around the lab, and he was sure that the lab rat had heard everything imaginable. Almost everybody had given them some dirty looks or the cold shoulder, save for Warrick, who knew, and Catherine, who understood. Grissom too, acted like nothing had happened, but that was nothing new.

Sara shook her head. "No." Sigh. "He's been avoiding me all day."

"Yeah, me too." He paused, thinking. "Think I should try to explain to him? You're not at blame, Sar."

The brunette frowned. "It's both our faults, Nicky. We should both try to explain."

"Let's go find him then." Nick made a move to get up from the bench.

"No need." A familiar voice bounced off the metal lockers, and its owner's face appeared from around the corner. Greg looked between the two relieved friends, instantly sorry that he had blown up at them.

Nick cautiously smiled. "Man, we're sorry 'bout this morning. Right, Sar?" He elbowed her gently.

"Right." She didn't smile, but had an extremely wary look on her face.

"Just for fun," the cowboy unwittingly added, getting too far ahead of himself too fast.

He should have stopped right there, he really should have.

At those three words, the anger began to build up again, stronger, burning the logic away until it was replaced by unreasonable disgust. Greg felt the pity become eaten away by the rage that was overcoming him. "For fun?" The words came out measured and collected, but his dark eyes smoldered dangerously.

"Uh, yeah. No harm from it." Confusion began to spread across Nick's features. If it wasn't so serious, Greg might have laughed at the bewildered look on his friend-no, make that former friend's face.

"Damn right, no harm," Greg snapped viciously. "Little Greggo's an ADHD freak who can't ever say anything serious, always gotta be funny!" He took a deep breath, and his coworkers stepped back in alarm. "Lab rat turned field mouse. I'm not your fucking pet!"

"Greg?" Sara's voice came out timid, almost frightened. It was in truth-she had never seen him this hell-bent on fury.

"Fuck off, Sara."

The brunette recoiled, looking away in guilt, uncomfortable in the arm that Nick had wrapped around her shoulders. She still had her temper, but now she lost it. "You know what, Greg? We're trying to explain it to you, but you won't listen. We didn't mean anything by it!" Sara pleaded futilely.

Violently shoving past the growing crowd, Greg smashed into Hodges carrying some trace reports. Without stopping to say sorry, he went forward into Grissom's office and slammed the door shut.

Glancing at the now blank-faced Sara and a perturbed Nick, Hodges shot them a smug look, nose in the air, saying "I-knew-it".

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"Catherine, you're with me. Nick, Sara, DB at the Tangiers. Warrick, you and Greg take the bank robbery over on the Strip." Grissom intoned almost monotonously. Not surprisingly, he seemed just as insensible as ever.

It had been a week since the fiasco, and gossip around the lab was once right about one thing: the friendships between Greg, Sara, and Nick, were shot. Word was, Greg had refused to be within five feet of the two of them, unless absolutely necessary. Sara wasn't talking to either of the two men, going back into workaholic-induced isolation.

"I thought I was mentoring Greg." Sara protested weakly, saying his name for the first time in three days. Looking towards Grissom, the words were directed rather towards the man in question.

Grissom and Catherine exchanged a look, one that Nick didn't miss. Maybe their supervisor wasn't as dense as they thought. "Greg asked for Warrick," Grissom said guardedly, still confused as to why. "So, from now on Warrick will be taking Greg out on the field."

The hurt on Sara's face shone as plain as day, but she tried valiantly to hide it. "Oh." Slumping back into her seat, she didn't say another word.

It had been devastating, really, to know that Greg was ignoring her in every way possible. She had even gone to his house, but he had left her out in the November night with nothing more but unheard apologies.

"But Sara's been teaching him from the start," Nick protested, once more directed more towards the youngest of the team.

"It's not your business who teaches me," Greg retorted waspishly.

"It's not Sara's fault."

"Oh, so who's fault is it?"

"Nobody's."

"Like you-"

"Enough already!" Grissom barked, glaring at each of the two in turn. "Stop acting like children and act like the team you are."

Nick looked away, face burning bright rouge in embarrassment. Greg, however, sat up straighter in his chair.

Everybody turned towards him as he leaned forward. "That's it." He slammed his hands palm up on the table , making the team jump in surprise.

"Uh…." Catherine recovered first. "Greg?"

"Day shift or resignation?" he glanced at all of them. Warrick stared at him in astonishment, but didn't say anything.

"What?" Tearing his gaze from his hands, Nick shook his head. "What are you talkin' about?"

"I move. I leave. Which one?" Getting up from his chair, Greg began to pace around the room.

Catherine's aqua eyes followed his movements. "You're giving us an ultimatum?" She crossed her arms, a look of disbelief etched across her face.

"Exactly." He halted in his steps, and faced the group. "So what's it gonna be?"

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Toasting their beers, the foursome cheered in celebration for the anniversary.

"Six months and counting," Warrick grinned as he gulped down half of his bottle.

"Congrats, man." Clapping a hand onto Greg's back, Nick gave Sara a hug. "Gold fish," he added, watching his younger friend pull a card from the pile

She rolled her eyes. "So nobody's going to congratulate me?"

Leaning over, Greg kissed her and dodged the playful slap she had coming his way. "Congrats, Sar. Got a ten?"

Rolling her eyes, she handed him three cards. The spiky-haired CSI gave her a lopsided-grin.

The dark-skinned CSI snickered. "Got you wrapped around his finger, Sara. How much you wanna bet that-"

"No more bets!"


End file.
